FBI Director Opposes Memo Release Because of Inaccuracies, Source Says

[demmiblue]

Source: Bloomberg

FBI Director Christopher Wray told the White House he opposes the release of a controversial, classified GOP memo alleging bias at the FBI and Justice Department because it contains inaccurate information and paints a false narrative, according to a person familiar with the matter.

President Donald Trump was overheard Tuesday night telling a Republican lawmaker that he was “100 percent” planning to release the memo, which was written by staffers on the House Intelligence Committee and is aimed at raising questions about the validity of the investigation into possible collusion between Trump’s campaign and Russia, now led by Special Counsel Robert Mueller.

The FBI isn’t included in the inter-agency review process led by the White House aimed at deciding whether -- and how much of -- the memo can be made public following a vote Monday by the House Intelligence panel to release it. Wray was allowed to read the memo on Sunday.

It’s unclear how thorough the White House review process will be. As Trump departed the House floor after delivering his State of the Union address, C-SPAN cameras captured Representative Jeff Duncan, a South Carolina Republican, asking the president to “release the memo.”

Read more: https://www.bloomberg.com/news/articles/2018-01-31/trump-says-100-percent-after-he-s-asked-to-release-gop-memo

[democratisphere]

1. Why would the FBI director be concerned about a fake and false memos?

[Maggiemayhem]

8. Because it is written by Republicans to discredit the FBI

It does not have to contain factual information. If it gets out to the media, there is a certain population that will believe anything and never bother to fact check. If I were Congress, I would be more worried about what intelligence services have them personally.

[leftynyc]

10. That's my thinking

The last thing Pres Bush (senior) said to Bill Clinton was "don't piss off the intelligence agencies". We may start seeing little tidbits leaking out about the ones trying to trash them.

[Abouttime]

2. This memo has been discredited before its even been released

If it is released all we will hear is a giant ‘thud’ then the media will tear it apart as the partisan hit piece it is.
This is the last gasp from trump as Mueller closes in for the kill.

[Hermit-The-Prog]

12. discredited reporting, too

Someone on here posted a report about Russian bots being responsible for a significant push to "release the memo" on social media, yet that's not included in most reports now.

From the article:

Releasing the memo has become a cause for conservative congressional Republicans, who say the Federal Bureau of Investigation and the Justice Department pursued the probe of possible Russian ties to the Trump presidential campaign under false pretenses.

Seems like they should report who else has taken up the "cause" to release the memo.

[mr_lebowski]

3. Wray reads Sunday, then asks McCabe to clean his desk Monday ...

I have to think these two facts are not unrelated. I think there's a good chance that Nunes, after digging all through the FBI's business/texts ... found SOMETHING that he could at least somewhat credibly spin as 'obvious bias' in something McCabe put in 'writing' somewhere, and Wray decided to get out in front of it by letting him go so he could point to it later and say 'yeah, but ... see, I took care of it as soon as I saw', just like Mueller did w/Strzok.

Of course Nunes' 'version' of whatever he got his grubby little mitts on is probably total bullshit 'spin' but Wray can't stop them from putting this stupid bullshit memo out if they & the WH want to, and he's probably aware that the GOPpers planned to block the Dem's rebuttal memo so he's not even going to get THAT for 'cover/context'.

[Maeve]

6. He could also be thinking that McCabe doesn't need the shit-storm

And that it will be lessened if McCabe's planned departure came first.

I think the storm is going to bury Nunes in the end and no one deserves it more.

[TwistOneUp]

13. Agreed. nt

[angrychair]

11. It was a preemptive move to defang controversy

The person that has replaced McCabe is David L. Bowdich, who has had a solid career in law enforcement and worked his way from the ground up and is a Mueller apprentice. Unimpeachable ethics and integrity. He is definitely not a trump cronie or apologist.

[grantcart]

15. Yep Wray is looking good so far

[SHRED]

4. When we lose trust among institutions

Especially between the intel community and Congress...we are left more vulnerable and weak.

Trump and the GOP are destroying the Federal Government.

[dhill926]

9. that is indeed their goal....

[TwistOneUp]

14. Exactly as

Russia wants him to.

[yallerdawg]

5. The R's all agree:

"Worst reason ever!"

[BumRushDaShow]

7. This whole thing has become like a fucking "cliff hanger TV show episode"